Vesic: The value of contracts signed in China is almost four billion euros

Photo: MGSI

The Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure signed three commercial contracts with Chinese companies in Beijing today, which relate to the construction of infrastructure in Serbia, and Minister of Construction Goran Vesic said in Beijing that the value of these contracts is almost four billion euros and that they will result in almost 300 kilometers of new roads.

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"The first refers to the high-speed road 'Smile of Vojvodina' which starts at Backi Breg and goes through Sombor, Kula, Vrbas, Becej and Novi Becej, Kikinda and finally to Srpska Crnja.

The length of that road will be 186 kilometers, plus an extension to Srpska Crnja, so we will have almost 200 kilometers when we finish it. It will be a very important road that will connect not only the north of Serbia, but also Hungary and Romania, which is why we expect it to be very busy," said Vesic.

He stressed that work on the expressway will begin the next month and that construction permits have already been issued for the first 5.5 kilometers. A contract was also signed for the construction of a highway between Belgrade, Zrenjanin and Novi Sad, which will be 105 kilometers long.

The design of that highway is being completed and it is expected that works will start next year, said Vesic and pointed out that Novi Sad will thus be connected to a third highway, which will give the city excellent traffic connections.

"These two roads mean that Banat, which was neglected, will now be connected by traffic, which is significant for the development of traffic infrastructure. The total value of these contracts will be between 3.5 and 4 billion euros. We are building almost 300 kilometers of highways and expressways, which is a huge contribution to the continuation of the construction of traffic infrastructure, which is the vision of President Vucic, that Serbia develops through the development of traffic infrastructure. Every road, every railway means that we will have new jobs, a better standard of living and the development of the economy," emphasized Vesic.

The third contract signed today concerns the purchase of five Chinese high-speed trains.

"We negotiated for a long time with our friends from China regarding this contract. For 54 million euros, we got five trains, which means that we will now have fast trains, Chinese trains that will run on the Belgrade-Budapest line.

Some of those trains will be in service already at the beginning of 2025, by the end of 2024 we will have completed our part of the high-speed railway to Subotica, and as soon as in 2025, after testing the railway, we will have a high-speed train from Belgrade to Subotica, traveling an hour and ten minutes. When our friends from Hungary have completed their part of the railway, it will go up to Budapest," said the minister.

He added that all the trains we buy from China are compliant with European standards and can be used on EU railways.

Vesic said that this was our condition, and that it was not a problem for the Chinese friends to meet it.

"They really have the largest number of high-speed railways in the world. China has more than all other countries combined, they have over 40,000 kilometers of high-speed railways, and some of those trains travel at speeds of up to 350 kilometers per hour," said Vesic. He pointed out that during the morning he also signed an agreement with the Ministry of Transport of China.

"It's an agreement on coordination of all activities in infrastructure. So in the future, my colleague and I will have a meeting once a month with all Chinese companies working in Serbia, go through the status of all projects and in this way make sure that all projects are executed on time.

Also, we jointly agreed to create a program in which Chinese companies working in Serbia will participate, within the framework of which students from technical faculties in Serbia, who have already signed a contract with the ministry headed by me, will get professional training in China," said Vesic.

In this way, said Vesic, construction, architecture and traffic students from Belgrade, Nis, and Novi Sad universities will have the opportunity to learn on the ground with Chinese companies when it comes to building railways, dams and other infrastructure built by the Chinese.

(Telegraf Biznis)